London -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- With its palaces , sculpted parks , concert halls and museums , Vienna is a city steeped in culture .

Once home to composers including Beethoven , Mozart , and Johann Strauss , and to artists Gustav Klimt , Oskar Kokoschka and Egon Schiele , as well as the father of psychoanalysis , Sigmund Freud , Vienna has been at the forefront of major cultural movements for centuries .

But that does n't mean it 's stuck in the past ; Vienna has a youthful side , too , and is visited yearly by backpackers as much as mainline culture aficionados -- something Richard Linklater celebrated in his 1995 film `` Before Sunrise , '' which charted two strangers falling in love in the course of one day , with Vienna as the romantic backdrop .

Whether you visit in the winter for Christmas markets glittering under snowflakes , or in the spring when the flowers in the city 's many parks are in bloom , the city is sure to charm .

CNN World 's Treasures selects some of the best spots to experience `` Old World '' Vienna , from galleries and parks to historic landmarks .

SEE

2012 marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Austrian painter Gustav Klimt , one of the founding members of the Vienna Secession , an avant-garde artistic group at the turn of the century .

Indeed , one of the city 's architectural masterpieces , the art nouveau Secession building , was commissioned by the group at as a haven for the latest in contemporary art .

The Museum features Klimt 's Beethoven mural , but to see his famed golden-hued painting `` The Kiss , '' head to the Belvedere Museum , housed in a magnificent palace built in the 1700s . It boasts a comprehensive collection of Klimt paintings , alongside works by Kokoschka , Schiele , Vincent van Gogh and Auguste Rodin among others .

Vienna 's turn-of-the-century painters owed much to the new theories about the mind coming from Sigmund Freud , and no trip to Vienna would be complete without visiting the Sigmund Freud Museum , where the founder of psychoanalysis lived until he was forced to flee in 1938 . Take in a lecture or simply wander around the original waiting room and imagine you are about to be examined by the great man himself .

For those looking to feast their eyes on earlier examples of the city 's opulent past , look no further than the Schatzkammer , the imperial treasury and home to the Hapsburg Crown Jewels , which is located in the vast Hofburg Palace , seat of the ruling Hapsburg dynasty .

HEAR

For lovers of classical music , Vienna is a must-visit , as it was in the eighteenth century , when it attracted the young Mozart .

You can visit the apartment Mozart lived in when he composed `` The Marriage of Figaro '' among other great works , which has been turned into a museum and boasts temporary exhibitions , in addition to the permanent collection of objects in the house itself . You can even hear his music wafting through the rooms as you wander around .

For concerts , head to the Musikverein for performances by the Wiener Philharmoniker and smaller chamber concerts . Or for operas , book a seat at the grand Staatsoper , or the Theater-an-der-Wien , where works by Beethoven and Strauss originally premiered .

STROLL

Vienna has a wealth of open spaces and parks , from the sculpted alpine gardens at the Belvedere Castle to the more laid-back , youthful feel of Danube Island . Rathauspark boasts an ice-skating rink in winter and an open-air cinema in summer . Alternatively , take a walk around the Baroque gardens at the Schonbrunn Palace . A well-worn tourist activity is to ride the Ferris wheel at the Prater Amusement Park , which features in the Graham Greene-penned noir film `` The Third Man . ''

STAY

Places to stay in Vienna are plentiful and cater to all budgets . The Hotel Altstadt is located in the arty Spittelberg district , just behind the MuseumsQuartier and features an impressive contemporary art and design collection ; Das Tyrol , a cozy former monastery with a small spa , features art works by young Viennese artists ; the Konig von Ungarn has the benefit of being in the same complex of 300-year-old buildings as Mozart 's one-time living quarters ; and the Hilton Vienna Danube has views over the river .

EAT

Viennese cuisine is not for those watching their waistlines ; mouth-watering pastries and cakes , breaded meats and beer and wine a-plenty make the city a feast for the taste-buds . Steirereck serves an impressive , if also not exactly slimming array of delicious Viennese dishes , while Demel serves coffee and cakes for an afternoon treat in-between sightseeing .

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Vienna is a city steeped in culture ; CNN World 's Treasures selects the top cultural destinations for visitors

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Home to Mozart , Sigmund Freud and painter Gustav Klimt ; city is full of museums , galleries and concert halls

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Visit Secession and Belvedere Museums for art ; take in a world-class concert ; stroll around parks

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Enjoy the city 's rich and mouth-watering dishes , and treat yourself to a strudel or two